An Order relative to the adoption of permanent Joint Rules for the 190th General Court governing the 2017-2018 legislative sessions (House, No. 2019)

What it means

A House order adopting the joint rules that govern how the House and Senate work together in the 2017-2018 session. The rules list the joint committees and their sizes (6 senators and 11 representatives on most), require each committee to post its own rules of procedure, and give committees oversight duties. They set deadlines: bills must be filed by the third Friday in January of the first year, committees must report on most bills by the first Wednesday of February of the second year, formal business ends by the third Wednesday in November of the first year and by July 31 of the second year, and no conference committee may be named after July 17 of the second year. They also cover conference committees, emergency measures, constitutional amendments, joint conventions and other procedures.

Source: official text and history of H.2019 on malegislature.gov. This describes the bill text posted there; amendments may have changed the version that was voted on.